


Hold on to me (cause I'm a little unsteady)

by orphan_account



Category: Power Rangers, Power Rangers (2017)
Genre: F/F, Homophobia, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, will add more tags later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-02
Updated: 2017-11-23
Packaged: 2018-10-13 22:13:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10522947
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Following Rita's attack on Trini, Kimberly comes to comfort her and spends the night. The next morning they are caught in a compromising position by none other than Trini's mom.





	1. The Act

**Author's Note:**

> Just a heads up this will deal with homophobia. Starts as soon as Rita left after attacking Trini.

She doesn’t know how much time passes since Rita leaves but it feels like forever as she sits on the dirty floor against the wrecked wall. She feels cold and her neck is throbbing but she can’t bring herself to move, the fear still coursing through her.

A hand touches her shoulder and she reacts before looking. She grabs the hand, standing up with rapid speed, and pushes the unsuspecting body against the wall, her forearm digging into the person’s neck. Adrenaline is rushing through her body but all she can see is green.

“Trini, it’s me,” the voice whimpers, “Kim.”

Kim. Green eyes turn brown and it’s only then that Trini registers the fear and pain on Kimberly’s face. Guilt bubbles up in her and her blood runs cold. She stumbles back leaving Kimberly to gasp for air. The fear morphs to worry and Kimberly takes a step forward. Trini mimics by taking a step back and falls. It hits her all at once.

She hurt Kimberly, she’s no better than Rita; Rita, who has left a mark in her room. The smell of death and the salt water, it clings to her room, to her body, to her clothes.

Her yellow shirt is ripped in places that Rita’s claws dug in. Her breathing is shallow as she begins to pull off her tattered shirt over her head. It comes off and she flings it across her room but it doesn’t help, her chest feels tight, she can’t breathe.

“Hey! Hey, Trini, calm down.” The girl takes two long steps and envelopes her in her arms. Trini stiffens momentarily and then her body is shaking, tears running down her face. She clings to Kimberly’s shirt afraid that if she lets go she’ll fall apart. Her knees go weak but Kimberly catches her and picks her up with an arm under her legs and cradling her against her chest. She doesn’t hesitate in burying her face in Kimberly’s neck.

“Shh, it’s alright. She’s gone and I won’t let her hurt you.” Kimberly whispers softly. She does not know how Kimberly knows or what she knows but at the moment it is irrelevant.

Kimberly maneuvers them to the bed with as much ease as possible as Trini tightly grips Kimberly’s shirt. She’s faintly aware that she’s shirtless in front of a girl she has a crush on but the thought dissipates as a hand combs through her hair. Her breathing evens out, her heart rate slows and her chest doesn’t feel like it’s crushing her lungs. She can fell herself relax even though her whole body aches. Exhaustion catches up to her and her eyes begin to droop. Kimberly murmurs soft and comforting words to Trini as they adjust to a comfortable position. Trini needs to thank her, to apologize for hurting her. She tries to fight it, to stay awake and protect Kimberly but sleep overcomes her.

 

 

"Trini!"

Trini shoots up in her bed, mind still foggy from sleep and vision slightly blurry. She registers the cold first, she wasn’t cold before, and then her mother's angry face. Why the hell is she in her room? She wants to say something sarcastic but her throat hurts, her body hurts.

"What's going on?" A groggy voice says next to her.

Kimberly! She jerks her head in the girl’s direction who has sat up and is rubbing her eyes. Trini thinks it’s cute but she can’t delve into those thoughts when her mother is present. And then she realizes why she’s cold and her mother is fuming.

She’s shirtless, with a girl, in her bed. Shit!

“Trinidad, qué ésta haciendo esa muchacha en tu cama?” Her mother screams.

Trini winces at the loudness. “Mamá, lo puedo explicar!” She blurts out but her mother is not even listening.

“Y porqué está hecho un desastre tu cuarto?” She flings her arms gesturing at the walls.

Trini opens her mouth to speak but her mother cuts her off, “Y tu cuello, quiero un explicacion ahorita!”

Trini opens her mouth but gets cut off again. “And don’t even think of lying to me!”

Annoyance flares up and she gets angry, her mother never listens. She doesn’t think twice before shouting, “I'm gay!”

Her mother’s eyes widen and her own eyes widen as she clamps a hand over her mouth. Fuck, she did not mean to come out like that. The silence is deafening as she waits for her mom to say something. She feels a warm hand grab her free hand and squeeze it lightly in a comforting gesture. She wants to turn to Kimberly and tell her thank you but she can’t seem to look away from her mother’s stunned face but she squeezes Kimberly’s hand and hope that’s enough to show that she appreciates the girl being there.

“What?” Her mother stutters. She looks at Trini with shock and then glances next to her. She stares at Kimberly, at their joined hands. She can almost see her mother forming one of her crazy theories in her head.

“Wait! No she's-” She doesn’t get a chance to correct her mother as she is interrupted again.

“Get out!” Her mother shouts and her chest is tight, her heart is beating rapidly, painfully.

“You're kicking me out?” She asks, unable to keep the sadness from her voice. She knew this would happen.

“No tú Trinidad!” She shrieks. “That girl, I want her out of my house now. We need to have a serious discussion.”

She should be happy that her mother is not kicking her out but the hate and the disappointment behind her mother’s eyes makes her feel like it would be better if she left.

"I should go." Kimberly mumbles as she untangles their joined hands and places it on her bare shoulder. Trini forces away the reaction to shiver and settles for a nod. Kimberly hugs Trini and places a kiss on her cheek. She melts into the embrace trying to gain some sort of strength to face her mother. The warmth of Kimberly’s body almost makes her forget this whole mess.

"If you need me to come pick you up just call me, please." Kimberly whispers in her ears. She nods into the girl’s neck. She wants to say thank you but can’t seem to find her voice. Kimberly tucks a stray stand of her behind her ear. Trini fights the urge to lean into the touch and settles for nodding. She turns to face her mother as Kimberly walks out. She wants to call out after her, beg her to stay, beg her to take her.

She feels desolated with the look her mother gives her. Normally she’d thrive of pissing her mother off but knowing her mother hates her, hates who she is, it kills her. She waits for the screaming to begin, for the lectures as her anxiety builds up with the silence.

Her mother shakes her head with a frown. “Put on a shirt and head downstairs while I get your father.”

Her stomach drops, this isn’t going to end well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please review and let me know what you thought.  
> Translation:  
> 1\. qué ésta haciendo esa muchacha en tu? - what is that girl doing in your bed  
> 2\. Mamá, lo puedo explicar! - mom, i can explain  
> 3\. Y porqué está hecho un desastre tu cuarto? - and why is your room a mess  
> 4\. Y tu cuello, quiero un explicacion ahorita! - and your neck, i want an explanation right now


	2. The Discussion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trini talks to her parents. Warning: implied suicidal thoughts. All mistakes are mine.

"Trini sit down."

 

Trini sits at the end of the table. Her father sits at the other end of the table with her mother standing next to him. Her mother's face is disapproving in comparison to her father's exasperated look. Trini makes sure to school her expression to look nonchalant despite feeling like her insides are shaking.

The silence terrifies her as memories of the last meetings she had with her parents resurface. The same table, which is why she avoids dinners (that and her parents judgemental questions), just different walls.

"Trini tell me what's going on?" Her dad sighs.

"We already know what's going on! The questions is what are we going to do about it." Her mother interrupts before Trini can even open her mouth.

Trini instantly feels fear surge through her body. She can't breath, this can't happen, not again. 

"Por Dios mujer, déjala contestar!" Her father shouts with a glare as he turns to his wife.

Her mother glares but stays quiet as they both look at her expectantly. But Trini's heart is beating rapidly. 

"Please don't send me back there papi." Her hands shake and she grabs onto the edge of the table in order to steady them.

He looks confused for a second before it dawns on him what Trini is talking about and then a look of regret crosses his face.

"Mija I promise I won't send you anywhere but I want to know what's going on?" He offers in gentle voice that Trini can't remember him using with her.

All those other times they had family discussions regarding what Trini did things tended to get loud and though his tone should be comforting she feels thrown off.

"What happened to your room?" He questions gently.

"I was upset." She tried to sound as sincere as possible. "And I started throwing things around."

Her father nods but his gaze is calculating trying to figure out if she's lying or not. 

"And your neck?" Another tentative question. 

Trini knows this is the hardest lie because she can still feel Rita's cold fingers wrapped around her throat. Her eyes glass over and she takes a deep breath to will the tears away. She wants to tell the truth, she wants to tell her parents she's scared out of her mind. No one is safe. Nowhere is safe. But she can't. 

"I did it to myself, I was angry and-"

"No nos mientas Trinidad!" Her mother yells causing Trini to jump in her seat as she points a finger at her. "That girl was in your bed and you were half naked!"

"Nothing happened, I swear!" Trini pleads.

"You expect is to believe you when all you do is lie!" 

"You expect me to be honest when all you do is judge me!" Trini bites back.

"What you are doing is an abomination!" She shouts and Trini feels like she's been slapped. Her shoulders sag and she lowers her gaze, there are now small indentations on the table where her fingers have gripped the wood too tightly. Her mother will never accept her.

"Ya cállate Erica!" Her father shouts as he slams his hand on the table. Her mother quiets but glares at her father, clearly displeased with being interrupted.

"Trini what happened with that girl?" 

"Nothing but it doesn't matter since you won't believe me." Trini mumbles. 

"I'll take her to see Pastor Miguel. He'll fix you this time." She directs the first statement to her father and the last to her.

Trini's hands begin to tremble. No she doesn't want too see him again, she doesn't want too end up in that mental state again, she can't... It took her to long to be able to function and even now she's still struggling with her identity thanks to that man. He broke her and she still hasn't fully repaired. She'd rather not exist.

"No," her father states firmly, "this time well take her to see an actual qualified professional and one that she's comfortable with."

"No, pastor Miguel is a very wise man he'll know how to deal with her problem."

Her father's face hardens. "The only problem Trini has is that she's feeling upset and she might hurt herself."

"You can't be okay with this Patrick."

"I am, as should you. She's our daughter and as long as she's not hurting anyone she should have our love and support."

"I cannot support this." With a shake of her head, she walks out of the dining room. 

Her father sighs before turning back to Trini with a forced smile and a calm voice. "So tell me about this girl?"

Trini blushes. She used to dream about being able to talk to her dad about girls but that thought quickly died away after being caught kissing her best friend a year ago, after the way they reacted. But Kimberly she's an unattainable crush. "She's just a friend."

A friend. 

Her dad gives her a knowing smile. "But you like her as more than that?"

Her straight best friend.

"She's not like that, not like me." She frowns. 

"Gay? You can say it mija there's nothing wrong with that!" Her dad says it so cheerfully that anyone else would not believe that at one point her father refused to acknowledge it, to acknowledge her.

Trini should feel happy that her dad has (or seems to) finally accepted her, that he's trying. But instead all she feels is anger. Anger that they put her through hell and he thinks it's all okay now. She stands with a start and her father flinches at the sudden movement.

"Then why did you led me to believe otherwise! Why'd you send me to that camp? Why'd you sent me to that man? Why didn't you defend me from mom?" She's heaving. She knows she shouldn't be screaming at her dad and is surprised he's losing her but she's been bottling it up for so long. 

"You led me to believe for a long time that I was wrong, you made me feel like a deprave and now you want me to be okay with it!" By the time she's done tears are flowing down her cheeks. 

Her father stays silent as he looks at her with what she can only describe as remorse. She waits for him to say something. 

Nothing.

Trini scoffs as she turns around and walks out of the room and out of the house. She wished She could use all of her strength to slam the door, to break it but instead she slams it as slightly is possible still causing a sound to echo. She expects her father to say something, to apologize, to come after her. If it's what she wants at the moment, she's not sure but she still can't help but disappointed when she stands alone on her front porch. She takes a few deep breaths and wipes her face.

 

She needs to get away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope this didn't suck too much, i know it's short. Please leave reviews, they fuel my creativity and will probably make my shitty week much better. I've been using all those trimberly fics to distract myself, so much great writing in this fandom.  
> Translations:  
> 1) "Por Dios mujer, déjala contestar!" - by god women, ley her answer  
> 2) papi - daddy (in the non-dirty context)  
> 3) mija - term of endearment/abbreviatiabbreviation for my daughter  
> 4) No nos mientas - don't lie to us  
> 5) Ya cállate - shut up already


	3. Believe, believe in me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damn it's been like 8 years.

By the time she decides to return home the sun has set. The night is silent as people have finally retreated to their homes, the ones that remained intact, or have found refugee somewhere else. Each ranger left to check on their families but Trini had stayed back to help the town, as a civilian. She didn't want to go back not. Not to memories of Rita and not to her mother and father.

 

She's exhausted but her mind keeps running, she can't turn it off. It has definitely been one of (if not) the hardest day of her life. Between Rita, coming out, Billy dying, near death experiences and fighting Goldar. Eventually she ends up in front of her house. All lights are off except the living room lights. She contemplates slipping in through window but lacks the energy to do so. 

 

With no key or phone she tries the doorknob and finds it unlocked. Taking a deep breath, she gathers her courage and opens the door. She barely manages to put one foot through the doorway when she's practically tackled in a hug. She winces, her muscles aching. Her first instinct is to push away but eventually she relaxes and decided to enjoy the moment. She can't recall the last time her mother hugged her like this.

 

"I'm so glad you're okay, I was so worried."

 

Trini nods as she buries her face into her mother's shoulder. She wishes she could believe that statement. 

 

"I thought there was nothing worse than having my daughter be a," her mother chokes, "a lesbian."

 

Trini is surprised that her mother manage to say the word without any disgust.

 

"But when you weren't picking up your phone-"

 

"I forgot it."

 

"It's okay. I know we have a lot to work on but I do love you mija." Her mother pulls back and looks at her with such a tender look. Her mother's eyes water and she pulls back wipes at Trini's face, she hadn't realized she was crying. 

 

Her mother clears her throat. "Why don't you go shower. Do you want something to eat? I'm going to call your father and tell him that you're okay. He went into town to look for you."

 

And just like that her mother is back to her old self. She watches as her mother retreats into the kitchen and she makes her way up to her room.

 

The first thing she notices when she enters the her room is the open window. She feels the cold breeze hit her. She tenses immediately, trying to recall if she left the window open. She feels the anxitey bubble With a bated breath she inches into the room.

 

"It's me." Kim whispers as she comes out of the bathroom.

 

Trini jumps and glares at Kim as she closes and locks her door. "What are you doing here?" Trini whispers harshly.

 

She regrets when Kim winces and looks hurt. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

 

Trini bites back an apology and settles for changing the topic. "Are your parents okay?"

 

"Yeah they're or out of town and trying to get a flight back but with everything that happened, it might be a few days."

 

Trini turns to look at the locked door and contemplates her options. She's always been weak for a pretty girl. Kim's her friend now and she needs her.

 

"Do you want to sleep here?"

 

Kimberly smirks and steps closer. "Are you positioning me Ms. Gomez?"

 

Trini blushes and stutters a response. "No I just I meant stay here until your parents return."

 

"What about your parents?" Kimberly asks more seriously.

 

Trini glances at the doorknob again. She'll have to be very careful if she wants to avoid another mishap. Her parents are "trying" but the last thing she wants is for all that progress to cease. "They don't have to know."

 

Kimberly slowly moves closer, Trini watches as her eyes shift slightly down to her lips and Trini's breath hitches. She licks her lips unconsciously and waits. 

 

Kim looks up and stares at her. "Thank you." Kimberly wraps her arms around her.

 

And Trini doesn't know (won't admit) why but she finds herself slightly disappointed, hoping for something else. She chooses to push down those feelings and instead finds comfort in the arms wrapped around her.

 

"Trini." Her dad's calls out softly as he knocks softly in her door. 

 

Trini jumps apart from Kim and tries (fails) nokmt to panic.

 

"You need to hide." She whispers as she looks around the room. She grabs Kim's hand and pushes her into the closet and closes the door.

 

"Trini." Her dad calls out again.

 

She takes a deep breath and fixes a smile on her face. "Hi dad." She greets as she opens the door.

 

He looks at her scanning from head to toe and then pulls her into a fierce hug. She winces, her joints still aching but returns the hug nonetheless. 

 

"Please, next time make sure you have your phone with you, we were so worried."

 

"I will, I'm sorry." She mumbles as he presses a kiss to the top of her head. 

 

"I'm just glad you're okay mija." He pulls back eyes her oned more time, "Get some sleep." 

 

He walks out and trini waits for his footsteps to fade before closing and locking the door.

 

"You can come out now."

 

"Good." Kimberly breathes out as she opens the door and steps out. "I have not been in a closet since I was 14."

 

Trini looks at her confused. "What?"

 

Kimberly's confidence fades, "I, I thought you knew. I mean its not exactly a secret that I'm bisexual." Kimberly shifts on her feet, a nervous habit and continues rambling, "It's just most of the school ignores that fact unless I'm currently dating a girl and even they just assume it's a phase, I'm doing it for attention or revenge. I didn't think you'd have a problem-"

 

"Kim," Trini interrupts, "I'd be the last person to have a problem with that."

 

Kimberly sighs in relief and steps closer to Trini. "Thank you."

 

Trini blushes and tears her gaze away from the girl. She wants to know more, say more but she's exhausted. She'll deal with those feelings later.

 

"I might have something you can wear to sleep in." She moves towards one of her destroyed drawers and manages to open it. She ignores the panic she feels when she thinks of Rita and all the damage she's caused. She grabs a two shorts and two t-shirts.

 

"Here," she mumbles as she hands a set to Kim without looking at her and turns to give her some privacy and change herself.

 

When she finishes, she turns to find Kim ready and facing her.

 

"What side do you prefer?" She asks.

 

"I can take the floor." Kim replies.

 

Trini rolls her eyes and wonders how Kim can go from confident to shy within seconds. "Come on," she settles on the right side and lifts the covers so Kim can take the left.

 

Kim smiles and settles next to her. Trini's body feels tense as they both lay on their backs staring at the ceiling.

 

She inhales and exhales deeply and closes her eyes. Her chest feels tight and she balls her fist. She's safe, she's home, the worst is over, she tells herself. But her thoughts are racing and drowning her.

 

What if Rita is not really gone? What if her parents decide to kick her out? What if they come in any second and find her with Kim? What if after all of this her team decides that she's not worth their time?

 

"Hey, breathe," Kim's gentle voice brakes her out of her thought and she realizes her breaths are coming out in short soft gasps, "in, out, in, out."

 

She squuezes her eyes shut. "Can you feel my hand?" Trini nods as she focuses on the warm hand on her cheek, soft fingers slowly stroking her cheek.

 

"Good." Kim whispers. "You're here, you're safe."

 

Trini nods, her cheeks feel damp, her chest still hurts but it's becoming easier to breathe.

 

"No one is going to hurt you." Kim whispers and pulls trini close to her body. Trini buries her face in Kim's shoulder and clutches on to Kim's shirt as the girl wraps her arms around her.

 

"I promise I'll protect you." Kim's soothing voices near her ear. 

 

And Trini believes her.


End file.
